


the other side (of the sun shines brighter)

by cityofflights



Category: Law & Order: SVU
Genre: M/M, POV Outsider, Secret Relationship, Sonny and Kat are friends, lowkey shady to the svu squad
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-26
Updated: 2021-01-26
Packaged: 2021-03-12 03:20:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,433
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29003622
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/cityofflights/pseuds/cityofflights
Summary: “I thought you went to Fordham Counselor, or are you one of those people who buy shirts from other schools just because?”His eyes left the paper to look at her and then down at himself as if to check he really was wearing it. When he turned his head back up there was a slight red tone coloring his cheeks.“It’s...borrowed”Before she could come up with an answer a new voice made its way from the inside into the hallway, “Borrowed? If I remember correctly you said and I quote “I’m stealing this and there’s nothing you can do about it”, I don’t think that qualifies as borrowing.”or the one where Kat finds out Carisi and Barba are dating
Relationships: Dominick "Sonny" Carisi Jr. & Katriona "Kat" Azar Tamin, Rafael Barba/Dominick "Sonny" Carisi Jr.
Comments: 8
Kudos: 106





	the other side (of the sun shines brighter)

**Author's Note:**

> because sonny and kat should be bffs in canon and nothing can convince me otherwise

Kat looks from her phone screen to the buildings standing tall on the sidewalk and back to the screen, needing the double-check to prove she was in fact in the right place.

She didn't know what she was expecting from Carisi's house but an apartment in the Upper West Side wasn't it, after all, she knew what a public servant's salary looked like.

None the less it seemed as she was in the right place so she heads in.

She wasn't even supposed to be there, Rollins had already volunteered to run by the counselor's house and drop off some files he needed, but something had come up with her kids so Kat got stuck with the errands job.

Had it happen a couple of months ago she would have, obviously still come because she was in no position to say no to direct orders, but the complaining wouldn't be about delivering mail rather than who she was delivering it to.

She wasn't proud to admit she had been quick to judge Carisi in the first few months they worked together after all the squad acted like they all held some sort of resentment towards the cop turned attorney and while she was her own person, it felt only natural to follow her team's lead. But now that she had taken the time to get to know him and make her judgments she didn't understand why the animosity. 

She had always thought Carisi showed up at the precinct one day and announced he had a law degree and was leaving but after meeting the squad's old ADA and hearing Carisi call him his mentor, Kat got curious and decided to ask Rollins about it.

It was surprising to hear Sonny had been working towards his dream of being a lawyer during his whole stay at SVU, and it only managed to confuse her even more. Weren’t they aware he was going to leave someday? Or did they just think he decided to go to law school for the fun of it to then frame his degree on the wall and use it as a fun party story?

So Kat had been trying to give him a chance and unexpectedly finding out Carisi was actually a really cool dude under all those expensive suits and legal lingo.

As the elevator reached the fifth floor she confidently walked to the correct door and knocked.

“Just a second” Carisi’s voice called from inside the apartment. If he was surprised to see her there his face didn’t show it, as he offered her an easy smile in exchange for the files she handed him. 

While he read them she took a moment to take in his outfit. It was the first time she saw him in anything but the suits he always wore to court but it was expected that he wore something else on his days off, somethings like the jeans and t-shirt he had now. An old worn Harvard t-shirt nonetheless, she noted and since they were slowly on the path to the friendship she felt it was safe to comment on it.

“I thought you went to Fordham Counselor, or are you one of those people who buy shirts from other schools just because?”

His eyes left the paper to look at her and then down at himself as if to check he really was wearing it. When he turned his head back up there was a slight red tone coloring his cheeks.

“It’s...borrowed” 

Before she could come up with an answer a new voice made its way from the inside into the hallway, “Borrowed? If I remember correctly you said and I quote  _ “I’m stealing this and there’s nothing you can do about it” _ , I don’t think that qualifies as borrowing.”

That voice sounded awfully familiar to her and judging by Carisi’s nervous smile he knew that. 

“Do you come in?” he didn’t sound freaked out which she was glad for, the last thing she wanted was for Carisi to think she had any problem with his relationship.

“Alright,” he stepped aside to let her in and closed the door behind them.

Once inside Kat took a moment to appreciate the tasteful decorations she could see but was quickly distracted by the man standing in the middle of the living room. There, in a hoodie she recognized as an NYPD issued one stood the man she had only met a few weeks ago, Rafael Barba. He, opposed to Carisi, looked uneasy and made his way to them in short steps.

“Sorry I thought she wouldn’t know it was me” 

“It’s okay baby I don’t mind that she knows”

For a moment they seemed to forget she was still in the room, just gazing into each other’s eyes like something out of a Netflix teen romance.

It was equal parts disgusting and cute.

Not that she would ever admit to the second part.

She cleared her throat which fortunately broke their heart-eyes competition, “So I take it the rest of the squad doesn’t know about this” she gestured vaguely at them.

“They don’t and hum, if you could not say anything about it just yet.” he looked at the ground while talking and it shocked her how small he seemed compared to the confident guy she saw at work.

“Are they aware you’re not straight?”

“I’ve told them but they don’t usually pay much attention when I’m talking,” Barba opened his mouth to probably contradict what Carisi was saying but he didn’t give him a chance “But that’s not the point, the point is I’m not ready for them to know I’m dating Rafael”

“Because you think they wouldn’t accept it?”

“Because with them everything is complicated and sometimes I need a break from it all”

Barba had the resigned look of someone who had heard those words a million times and unsuccessfully tried to argue against them. Seeing them now interacting she doesn’t know how she could have missed the adoration clear in their eyes the first time they met. She’s surprised the rest of the squad didn’t figure it out either, after all, they had known both men for years longer than her and it didn’t take that much looking to see the love spelled in their faces.

“Well they won’t hear it from me” she was met with grateful smiles from both men.

“Oh before you go there are some files I also have for you” he leaves the room into what Kat assumes is a home office leaving her alone with Barba.

There’s a stiff silence between them but it doesn’t last long before Rafael speaks “He might not admit it but he’s fond of you, you remind him of himself when he first started out”

“He’s not so bad either he just-” she stopped mid-sentence, thinking it might be wise to keep her initial judgments to herself. After all, she couldn’t tell Barba how she was now cool with him but had thought for months that his boyfriend was a self-righteous prick.

“Takes a while to get used to? Yeah trust me I know all about it” he said with a smirk but it turns into a soft smile as Carisi walks back into the room.

Kat almost pulled the same face she used to make when she was younger and her parents would kiss in front of her but she kept her facial expressions under control, allowing just a small smile to show.

With new files in hand, she walked back to the front door escorted by Carisi.

“I understand wanting to keep this to yourself but I think your fears won’t be proven true if you tell the others” If there was one thing she could relate to was hiding parts of herself in order to be protected. She would never judge Carisi based on his decision to not share this part of him but seeing him with around Rafael, not only now but also a few weeks ago when they had gone up against each other in court, was the happiest she had ever seen him.

He deserved to feel that way freely without worrying about everyone else. 

“Maybe. I promise I’ll think about it”

Goodbyes were exchanged and just as the door shut completely she heard from the inside “You should listen to her”

Kat liked to believe her instincts were almost always right and that she could size up a person and their intentions pretty quickly but in the case of Sonny Carisi she was really glad she turned out to be wrong


End file.
